Head coach Alfred Schreuder explains why he preferred Super Eagles star to Netherlands international at NEC Nijmegen

The Eredivisie champions fumbled away from home at the weekend to continue to lose pace at the top of the league standing

Ajax Amsterdam manager Alfred Schreuder has knocked Dutch defender Owen Wijndal while praising Calvin Bassey as the club’s best left-back at the moment.

Bassey, one of Nigeria’s best defenders of 2022, has often been deployed as a centre-back since arriving at Ajax from Glasgow Rangers in the summer.

But the Nigeria international played at left-back on Sunday as Ajax struggled to a 1-1 draw at NEC Nijmegen.

It is a role often reserved for Netherlands international Owen Wijndal, who Ajax signed from AZ Alkmaar last summer.

But head coach Alfred insists Bassey showed more quality than Wijndal in training and it was the logical decision to play the Nigerian ahead of the Dutch defender.

“I think he (Bassey) did it well,” Schreuder said after the draw with NEC, as per Soccernews. “We tried it with both players in training and that is why I chose Bassey in the end.”

Of Owen Wijndal, Schreuder has urged the 23-year-old to give more to get back into the Ajax starting eleven.

Schreuder said: “He (Wijndal) has to bring more, he knows that himself. We push him in that too. That is obvious.”

Despite Ajax’s disappointing result at NEC, Bassey impressed with two tackles and one crucial clearance, while winning six of his ten duels.